April 09, 2009

Obama condemned Inuit seal hunt

Obama letter slams 'inhumane' seal huntU.S. President Barack Obama sees the Canadian seal hunt as "inhumane" and vowed to express his "outrage" during his days as a senator, it was revealed today.

Obama, who has not spoken publicly about the seal hunt since becoming President, vowed in a 2006 letter to animal-rights activists to work with colleagues "to ensure that we take all the necessary steps to express our outrage" with the Canadian government.

"I share your concerns about the Canadian seal hunt," Obama wrote to a member of People For the Ethical Treatment of Animals, or PETA, in the letter, dated April 13, 2006.

"As you know, Canada annually opens its eastern waters to commercial seal hunting. The United States and European Union have been unified in their opposition to the slaughter of seals by passing legislation decades ago to restrict the sale of seal-based products within their borders," Obama wrote.

"I certainly believe in the spirit of these acts; the U.S. should not condone this recent Canadian action."
Comment:  Is any kind of hunting "humane"? Okay, let's stipulate that Native hunters should kill their prey humanely, without pain or suffering. They should take care not to panic the animals, upset their social lives, or hurt their feelings.

With that out of the way, I don't think we can condemn the hunt simply because seals are warm 'n' fuzzy. Not unless we end our wholesale slaughter of cows, pigs, and chickens first, that is. It's the same thing regardless of how cute the victims are.

For more on the subject, see PETA Criticizes Sioux Slaughterhouse and PETA to Observe Seal Hunt.

2 comments:

Stephen said...

This reminds of how animal rights activists condemn Santeria and other traditions that practice animal sacrifice; basically the leftist version of 'those savages need to stop their savage ways.' Interesting, Obama praises a religion of hate (which allows slavery) and yet he condemns hunting, paging doctor hypocrisy....

Rob said...

Are you talking about Christianity, Stephen? Yes, Obama has praised it, even though Christians have killed, enslaved, or condemned nonbelievers for most of the last 2,000 years.